I just added a "ticker" to the first post in this thread to show what the current affiliate commission from theBD is and what is the yearly cost of hosting this site. (It's converted to £s, by the way, because that's the currency tBD uses to pay. Strictly speaking the hosting cost is 39€/year.)
I hope this doesn't make it too goal-oriented - as I've said there's no obligation for anyone to do anything. I just thought it would be a good idea to visualize where we are. (And no worries, the site won't go down even if we get nowhere near that "goal" - I'll figure out something. )

“Men it is who think they can rule others' lives but have no bonds to them. Do you think that to bond or not to bond is for you alone to decide?”

(May-17-2010, 08:39 PM (UTC))Mervi Wrote: Okay. I decided to put up a "fundraising ticker" here to show you where the BookDepository revenue is re: next year's hosting costs. ("Year" here means from September to September, btw, so most of 2010 is already covered.)

I think this is a terrific idea, Mervi, and makes good sense to me! When I purchased my books from TBD I couldn't help but wonder how to track that you had actually received the flow-on benefit...this would be a way for us, as the buyers, to ensure that you are?

Just for interest's sake, how does it work your end? I know you don't receive anything $$ until it reaches a certain figure but obviously you are sent regular alerts or updates regarding sales made via thePlenty site?

ps As well as the tracking/goal-reaching/covering costs value of it all, I think this is a wonderful way of offering a small sense of 'ownership' to all of us in the thePlenty community...very nice, thanks !

"I am the Catalyst, and I came to change all things. Prophets become warriors, dragons hunt as wolves."

About nine days ago I put in an order for seven books and three of them have just arrived in perfect condition/good packaging etc. I only get mail twice a week out here so it could be a quicker arrival time for those of you in urban areas. All good so far, my end !Quoted from site:
Standard Delivery United Kingdom 2-3 Working Days
Standard Delivery Western Europe 3-7 Working Days
Standard Delivery US & Canada 7-10 Working Days
Standard Delivery Other 7-14 Working Days

"I am the Catalyst, and I came to change all things. Prophets become warriors, dragons hunt as wolves."

Hmmm when I got Dragon Keeper from tbd it took 15 days (incld weekends) from ordering to receiving it in the mail!!!!!!! (and we get mail delivery every day!)
But then Tasmania IS a "remote" area ..... apparently!

That's the only book I've got from them so it might be not be the average time.

My experience with tBD is that they pack better than Amazon (and I've heard Amazon *used* to pack better, I've only been ordering from them during the last 2 years or so). In my (rather limited experience) play.com is the worst when it comes to packing stuff so that it survives the overseas trip.

Farseer, I can login to their site with my affiliate ID and password and see all kinds of statistics - how many clicks per day or month there have been, how many books have been sold through those clicks and how much £ that means. If I dig deep enough, I can see the IDs of the titles sold, and search the database to see what book titles those translate into (with amazon this is much easier, which is a good way of seeing what kind of books sell better than others). But I can NOT connect what has been bought to who bought it in any way (if that's a concern).

What I mean to do with the ticker is to update it regularly - it's done manually. (I log in to the affiliate page, check the sum, go to the ticker factory page and update the ticker there).

“Men it is who think they can rule others' lives but have no bonds to them. Do you think that to bond or not to bond is for you alone to decide?”

Thanks Mervi, that was really interesting and it's great to know that, through all of those stats, I don't have to worry that a purchase may be missed . It sounds like a really transparent process for all parties so there can never be any doubt/conflict regarding purchases made and benefits owed...very good business really, and clever marketing too (this is all new to me, obviously!).

(May-28-2010, 08:18 AM (UTC))Nuytsia Wrote: Hmmm when I got Dragon Keeper from tbd it took 15 days (incld weekends) from ordering to receiving it in the mail!!!!!!! (and we get mail delivery every day!)

I hate to rejoice in your sorrow but I am thrilled to know that we are ahead with something out here !

"I am the Catalyst, and I came to change all things. Prophets become warriors, dragons hunt as wolves."

Sweet!
I just hope you guys don't end up hating us for mentioning it when you finish all the ASOIAF books and find yourselves waiting 7 years for the next instalment!
With a bit (?) of luck he may have the next book out by the time you finish those already published .... but I shudder to think how long the one after that will take (hmmm and the next? I can't remember now how many books until it's, apparently going to be, finished)

Just a shameless but gentle reminder for those of you who are shopping online for the upcoming holidays: by visiting amazon.co.uk, amazon.com or the book depository through the following links before you make a purchase you'll be helping to host this site/contributing to a bookish gift for the admin sometime in the future.